VOR Simulator Pro vs CheckPrep
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
VOR Simulator Pro
Master radio navigation with this VOR simulator. Practice realistic dual VOR positioning and authentic navigation features like To/From indicators and Cone of Confusion effects. Ideal for pilots and aviation enthusiasts to hone skills on the ground.
- Dual VOR positioning practice
- To/From indicators
- Cone of Confusion effects
- Radial interception
- HSI or CDI displays
- Three aircraft models
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Master radio navigation with this comprehensive VOR simulator. Perfect for pilots and aviation enthusiasts wanting to practice VOR skills on the ground. Practice realistic dual VOR positioning to fix your location on the map. Experience authentic navigation features including To/From indicators, Cone of Confusion effects, and radial interception. Choose between HSI or CDI displays and toggle between three detailed aircraft: King Air, Cessna 172, or Piper Cherokee. This simulator reproduces VOR signal behavior, needle deflection, and station passage, allowing you to develop and maintain your navigation proficiency anywhere, anytime - no actual aircraft required. Great for students working on their private pilot or instrument rating.
CheckPrep
Prepare for your pilot checkride oral exams with this app. It's structured around the FAA Airman Certification Standards (ACS) and includes searchable regulations, adaptive quizzes, and real-world scenario trainers. Track your progress and know when you're ready.
- FAA ACS structured study
- Searchable FAR, AIM, and FAA documents
- Offline study and bookmarking
- Adaptive flashcards and quizzes
- METAR, TAF, and PIREP interpretation
- ATC clearance trainers
- Progress tracking (0-100%)
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Purpose-built for pilots who refuse to leave their checkride to chance. CheckPrep is a checkride oral prep app for the Private, Instrument, Commercial and Commercial Multi Add-On practical tests, built around the FAA Airman Certification Standards (ACS), the exact framework your DPE uses to evaluate you. This is not written test prep. This is oral prep. STUDY THE WAY YOUR DPE TESTS YOU Every question, answer and reference is organized by ACS Area of Operation and Task, the same structure your examiner follows. Every card maps to an ACS task, so every minute of study maps to your oral exam. THE FAA LIBRARY, FREE FOR EVERY USER Full FAR, AIM, Advisory Circulars, the ACS documents themselves, FAA letters of interpretation, InFOs and the FAA handbooks: PHAK, AFH, Instrument Flying, Instrument Procedures, Aviation Weather, Risk Management, Weight & Balance, Chart Users' Guide and the AMT handbooks. Tap a citation on a study card to open the exact paragraph, page or ACS element. Bookmark passages, search by keyword, read offline after download. AIM paragraphs also open on the FAA website, so you never have to wonder whether it is current. KNOW WHEN YOU'RE READY Mastery is tracked from 0 to 100% for every ACS task. Flash cards and multiple-choice quizzes are built from the same cards. Switch on the Needs Review filter to limit a session to the cards you still miss and leave the mastered ones out. When every task reads 100%, you know where you stand before the examiner does. DECODE REAL-WORLD WEATHER METAR, TAF and PIREP decoding practice with live data from aviationweather.gov. Included free. TRAIN YOUR EAR Departure (CRAFT) and approach (P-TAC) clearance trainers read the clearance aloud. You give the readback by voice. Beta, included with the Instrument guide. BUILT FOR YOUR CERTIFICATE Start with the free Private Pilot Sample: four complete ACS tasks with flash cards, quizzes and tappable citations. The full Private, Instrument, Commercial and Commercial Multi Add-On guides are one-time purchases, no subscription. Aircraft-specific add-on guides for the Cessna 172SP, Cirrus SR20 G7, Cirrus SR22 G6 and Diamond DA42 NG, each cited to the aircraft's own POH, AFM and PIM. Six themes. Offline-first. Study history and bookmarks sync across your devices through iCloud. Lightweight. No ads. No account required. No tracking. Walk into the oral knowing you have worked every ACS task. That is what CheckPrep is for. CheckPrep is an independent study tool and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by the FAA. All regulatory content comes from official FAA publications.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: VOR Simulator Pro at none against CheckPrep's 6. VOR Simulator Pro also leads on ratings volume (19 vs 4) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 26.2). CheckPrep's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs every 2 months) and rating (5.0 vs 4.6). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. CheckPrep sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. VOR Simulator Pro asks for nothing beyond the download.
CheckPrep holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 19 and 4 respectively.
VOR Simulator Pro ships an update every 2 months, CheckPrep every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | VOR Simulator Pro | CheckPrep |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (19 ratings) | 5.0 (4 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 19 — better | 4 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 3 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 26.2 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 169 MB | 13 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Pilot Institute | Robert Rousey |
Customer experience
VOR Simulator Pro
CheckPrep
In-app purchases
VOR Simulator Pro
No in-app purchases
CheckPrep
- Cessna 172SP Content$19.99
- Cirrus SR20 G7+ Content$19.99
- Diamond DA42 NG Content$19.99
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- Commercial Multi Add-On Package$59.99
- Commercial Package$59.99
- Instrument Package$59.99
Questions
Is VOR Simulator Pro free?
Is CheckPrep free?
Which has better reviews, VOR Simulator Pro or CheckPrep?
Do VOR Simulator Pro or CheckPrep have ads?
Which is updated more often, VOR Simulator Pro or CheckPrep?
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